When No One Else Would
by Riko Tenachi
Summary: When Ranma is severely maimed, he is abandoned by all he knew. Who is Hinako to help him cope with his loss?
1. Losing Everything

            Inside a relatively small bedroom, there were two people sleeping closely together. The male figure had his arms wrapped around the obviously female figure. A blanket covered them, but it was obvious that they weren't wearing anything underneath that. Outside, the sun was just about to rise in the horizon. This was the time that the man woke up, as it was programmed into his subconscious after years of training. He yawned loudly and cracked his neck to get the stiffness that resulted from sleeping out.

            He gazed fondly at the woman in his arms, who murmured slightly in her sleep, all the while smiling and sometimes even giggling. He was proud to have someone like her. She was the most precious thing in the world to him now, probably more than his martial arts skills. He would give up his life ten times over just to save hers if he had to. That was how important she was in his life. His smile became wider when he remembered last night. They had been married yesterday and their wedding night could not be any more wonderful.

            It's time to get up. *Sigh* She looks so beautiful when she's sleeping. I gave her a kiss on the forehead and tried to wriggle out without waking her up. She can be kind of grumpy if I woke her too early. After a few minutes, I managed to get free and got out of our bed. Her angelic face crinkled up a bit when I did, and she fumbled for something to hold onto and got my pillow. She squeezed it tightly before falling into another deep slumber.

            I stretched myself to get the kinks out of my body before getting my clothes and bath stuff. I headed across the hall to the bathroom and put the clothes in the dressing room before heading into the bathing room. Before I sat on a stool, I turned on the furo and filled a bucket with warm water from a nearby tap. After cleaning myself up, I reclined in the furo, sighing as the hot water washed over me.

            As I sat, I couldn't help but think just how I got here. Both of us have gone far together and now, we're happily married. My love for her started when she was the only one who cared for me...

______________________

//When No One Else Would\\

\\(By Riko Tenachi)//

//(Standard Disclaimers for Ranma 1/2 apply)\\

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Losing Everything

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            A seemingly twelve year old girl locked up her apartment and walked down the hall, to the stairs. She was wearing a dress that seemed too big for her and carrying a satchel. To some people, it may seem that she was going to school, and they are right, but not in the sense that they think. This is because the 'twelve year old girl' was in reality, Hinako Ninomiya, teacher and disciplinarian for Furinkan High.

            When she was young, she was a very frail child. It so happened that the grandmaster of Anything Goes, Happosai, met her and taught her a special skill of draining battle auras through a series of pressure points and practice. Now, whenever she drains someone, she turns into a fully-grown woman, but still returns to her child form after the energy is used up.

            As she was walking down the street, she couldn't help but sigh over everything. It was the start of the third year of teaching at Furinkan and she had yet to 'break' a certain delinquent. It was both annoying and tiring at the same time. But at least things aren't always as boring as some of the other schools that she had worked at before. She glanced around and saw some of the students walking as far away as possible from her. She didn't pay it any attention. It has always been like this ever since she first used that draining ability. People would either ignore her or be afraid of her. Being intimidated was one thing, but why would they be afraid? It had taken her delicate child mind a long time before accepting this belief.

            When she arrived at the school, she couldn't help but notice that there were people fighting... again. She frowned as she moved to the area, idly noticing the more than normal amount of weapons. "Alright, delinquents, stop this right now or else I'll drain you!" Her child voice cried out. One of the fighters turned his head at her shout and was instantly ganged on by the four other fighters. She thought she saw a glint of something shiny, but ignored it as she made way to the combatants. "I said stop fighting, right now!" She looked into her purse for a five-yen coin, but couldn't find any. She tried to dig deeper, but was alerted by someone shouting. 

            "Now you die, Ranma! Perfect Shi Shi Hokoudan Revised! Horizontal Bullet!"

            Hinako saw that lost boy Ryoga fire off the green ki blast at his opponent, who sluggishly dodged out of the way. Her eyes widened when she found out the blast was heading straight to her and she had no way to absorb it. She was as good as dead now.

~*~

            Earlier....

            Today will be the day that our enemy will fall. Two years of nothing but anguish for us. Now is the time for revenge. Today, Ranma Saotome will be eliminated to free our loved ones. He would be defeated, permanently.

            A familiar person walked on the fence, followed by his fiancée on the ground. This person was none other than Ranma Saotome, martial artist extraordinaire. To him, going to school only meant two things. Number one, it was a fighting ground. Number two, it was a place to get more sleep in. He didn't particularly care about the schoolwork. After all, a true martial artist wouldn't need education; he only needs to know how to fight.

            When we were about at the school gates, a familiar battle cry sounded through the air. "Ranma! Prepare to die!" It was followed by an umbrella crashing down onto the part of the fence where I was.

            "Too slow, P-chan. Where had you been during the whole summer? Barbeques?" To be honest, I didn't mean to insult him all the time; it's just that it became a habit over the last years.

            "Shut up, Ranma! You will die today!" Ryoga made another angry swipe at me. Of course, with his speed, his attack missed me by a fair margin. Wait, was it just me or did his speed seemed faster than normal.

            "Still too slow, Ryoga. Catch me if you urk!" What the hell?! As I fell to the floor, I quickly rolled back onto my feet. When I looked up, I only saw Ryoga standing there with a smirk on his face. "So you've gotten faster, P-chan. This is gonna be fun."

            Ryoga growled, but was still smirking. "Yeah, it'll be fun, for us."

            "Us?" I suddenly had a bad feeling about this fight. "Don't tell me...."

            "Foul sorcerer, how dare you set foot upon the holy grounds where the mighty Blue Thunder once tread?!"

            "Once I kill you, Shampoo would finally be mine!"

            "You've been interrupting my panty raids too many times, Ranma. Now, all of us are going to get rid of you once and for all!"

            "Crap. So P-chan, since you couldn't beat me by yourself, you've gotten all of your friends together to do it? Now who's the dishonorable one now?"

            "Ranma, stop picking on Ryoga!" Akane shouted at me. I glanced at her and was about to retort before someone punched me in the stomach.

            "What? Gah!" I flew back a couple of feet, but I managed to stop myself. "Who did that now?!" Okay, four people, I can probably take them. So what if Ryoga managed to get faster? The other guys are probably still the same. I just fought Kuno, Mousse, and Happi a week ago. Kuno's still a wannabe samurai. Mousse doesn't even have his glasses on. And I can beat the old perv once I'm done with the other guys.

            "Never be distracted in a fight, Ranma. Attack!" The old pervert called out.

            "You shall die by my blade, foul sorcerer!" I just noticed that Kuno was actually using a real katana. Not a problem, he did that several times over the last couple of years.

            "Yeah, yeah, I heard all that before." I immediately dodged to the side when he was about to slash down on my head. "And you never landed a hit on me ye-argh!" I suddenly grabbed onto my left arm; there was a long cut on my biceps and blood was pouring out. Fortunately, the cut didn't extend more than a centimeter into my skin. "What the hell?!"

            "It pains me to stoop to such levels as you, but I have finally learned that in order to defeat magic, you must use magic!" Kuno flashed his sword and there was a faint aura around it.

            "You coward!" Damn bastard. If he's using magic then the others probably are too. But I can't tell how.

            "Die Saotome!" The blind Amazon male threw a flurry of weaponry from his sleeves. I never expected it to hit me so I just moved to attack Ryoga before Kuno or Happy got to me.

            "I'll still win, you dishonorable bast-ahh!!!" I fell to the ground. I could feel several wounds on my back. My vision was starting to blur. Quickly, I managed to pull a blade out from my back and brought it up to my eyes. It was hollow, and had some kind of liquid oozing out of its tip. Poison, I thought to myself. Dammit, these guys were serious. I silently thanked the kamis for the brief break from attacks as I struggled to get up. When I looked up, they were standing in a circle, destroying any chance of me escaping, not that I would; these guys would pay first.

            "Alright, delinquents, stop this right now or else I'll drain you!" Someone shouted out.

            I turned my head reflexively to the source and immediately regretted it. The four fighters --if they could even be called that now-- attacked me once again. I tried using everything in my arsenal to stay alive, but the poison was kicking in and my abilities and reflexes were divided tenfold. Even while I actively use the fullest amount of ki, I only barely dodged or blocked a few hits and the majority that got through could have killed any lesser man. I don't know how, but I managed to stay standing.

            In his current magical enhanced form, Ryoga was able to call upon his ki attacks more easily. This was no surprise because seeing Ranma still standing after all of their efforts only deepened his depression. In a surprisingly solemn voice, he said, "Now you die, Ranma! Perfect Shi Shi Hokoudan Revised! Horizontal Bullet!"

            Shit! I tried to move out of the way as fast as I can, though currently, I only stumbled a few feet away from the ki attack's trajectory. I also spun around while doing this and saw that someone was directly in the giant sphere's direction. Dammit, I am the focus of all of the danger in this fight and I'll be damned before I let some innocent gets killed because of me. With a burst of adrenaline, I moved faster than I ever had before and stood in front of the girl a scant second before the energy ball hits. I powered myself up with even more ki from my reserves and surround my body with its aura. I thrust my ki-covered hands forward, taking the brunt of the attack. I increased the ki and I made an improvised energy shield. I was visibly strained and by the time the Shi Shi Hokoudan dissipated, I was fresh out of energy and it would probably only take a breeze to knock me out now. I don't even know how I can still think while my ki reserve is practically in the negatives.

            Unfortunately, nothing is ever that easy for me.

~*~

            As I stared wide-eyed at the ki attack, I was paralyzed. This is it; I'm actually going to die. I wondered if anyone would actually miss me if I were gone. But something happened. Someone jumped in front of me and blocked the deadly attack right before it would hit me. I looked up at his back and gasped. I saw his pigtail and knew that it was Ranma Saotome, but that wasn't what made me surprised. His tattered shirt showed extremely bloody scars on his back and there were some ninja stars still stuck in his skin. It looked like he wasn't even supposed to be alive now. His aura grew up to a big size and blocked the attack until both it and his ki are gone. A few seconds barely passed until the other fighters jumped him again, only two meters away from me. I watched in shock as the aggressors continued beating him to the ground.

            "Stop! Stop it!" They ignored me. Kami-sama, he's going to die! "Stop it now, please!" I looked around and saw the other students' expressions. Most of them had a surprised look at how savage this was. Some had already fainted. The only one who wasn't in either category was the Tendo girl, Akane, Ranma's fiancée. It was horrible. She was actually smiling! I immediately hated that sinister smirk on her. And to think that I was about to ask her for her help! I saw a few yen coins on the ground and immediately grabbed them up. "Happo Go-en Satsu; Happo Go-en Satsu; Happo Go-en Satsu; Happo Go-en Satsu!" I cried out frantically. I drained their energy and immediately grew up into my adult form.

            I ran across the short distance to Ranma's body and put a finger at his neck. His pulse is very low! "Someone get a ambulance! Now!" One of the underclassmen that was still standing ran into the building quickly. I held onto Ranma until the ambulance came and took him a few minutes later, after the bell rang. I was allowed to go with him on the ride to the hospital, where he was immediately sent to the emergency room. Doctor Tofu was there also, having had someone call him if Ranma was ever in the hospital. As I sat in the waiting room, I couldn't help but feel worried over the boy that had saved my life.

~*~

Later....

            "Excuse me, Hinako-san, but why are we in the hospital? Did something happen to Ranma?" The Tendos and Saotomes had been called earlier to the hospital, minus Nabiki, who had moved out for college. They had arrived soon after the call and were standing in the same waiting room as Hinako, still in adult form.

            A sad Hinako answered her. "Saotome-san, I'm afraid to tell you all that Ranma came here in a very bad condition. There was a fight this morning and...."

            "So? The boy had always gotten into fights. I expect him to be up any time now." A gruff voice interrupted her. It was Ranma's sorry excuse of a father.

            "It wasn't that bad. He did deserve it after all." This time it was Akane.

            I glared at her. For some reason, rage took its hold over me. "Wasn't that bad? Wasn't that bad?! He was dying! And you didn't do anything to help him!" 

            Her answer was just crossing her arms and answering, "That jerk _did_ deserve it, Hinako-san." By the way she said it, her name sounded like a curse. "And why did you help him anyway? Are you trying to steal him away from me, too?"

            I paused, not knowing how to answer that. Could it be true? Was there some hidden love for that delinquent? No, that must not be it. It was just common sense to help out someone in his condition. But before I could answer no, Akane left the waiting room, taking my pause as a yes. No one talk for a long time.

~*~

            It was nighttime before a very distraught Doctor Tofu came out. Everyone stood up, awaiting his answer. I changed back into my child form long ago, but the only thing that changed about me was that I was getting more impatient. Tofu looked at everyone solemnly --even looking at Kasumi didn't send him into jitters--.

            "I'm sorry. We managed to save him, but...." I could see that everyone else, but Akane for some reason, was eager to know how the brave Saotome would fare. "There had been some complications." He trailed off again.

            "What is it, doctor? Is he going to be alright?" I asked worriedly. I just knew that whatever words that came out of his mouth next would be devastating to all those present, especially to me for some reason.

            "Ranma...had taken a lot of hits from various blades. He'll have those scars for a while. He also has fractured ribs, various broken bones, and a heavy concussion. We also managed to nullify a deadly poison in him, but not before it did some damage to his nerves." I didn't know that it was possible to be even more worried at that line. "I'll get straight to the point. Ranma can not practice martial arts anymore, or anything for that matter." He finished solemnly.

           "Tofu-san, what is wrong with my son?" Nodoka's expression was stern. It was hard to tell what she was thinking of right now, though I would suspect that she was trying to keep her bearings straight for what will happen next.

            Tofu visibly got sadder. "Ranma is now a quadriplegic; both of his arms and legs are paralyzed. I'm sorry."

(END FOR NOW)

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Author's notes:

(6/09/03)

            Well, I'm pleased to say that I will continue this regularly, which means somewhere in between slow and fast. I've changed some stuff in here, such as Nabiki's presence (or lack thereof), and Hinako's reaction to Akane's questioning.

            To those who question how such a fic as this even exists because the canon characters would never act like that, well I have two things to say.

1.) It's FANFICTION! Duh.

2.) Yes, I have read and watched the anime of Ranma 1/2 before. I used to, but not now, draw my info solely on other peoples' possibly biased and misinformed stories. The only character that I dislike outright is Akane, and no one else. I'm sure many others share this opinion. I try to vary my fics so it's inevitable that each character would be portrayed differently (except Akane, I hate her that much).

The last comments were supposed to be a reply to one of the anomynous reviewers (Draco) and possibly more in my other stories. I don't know who you are, but at least you took the time to review anyway, so thanks for adding about a kb to this chapter. ^_^

lataz, and keep reviewing people!

You know the regular place to say stuff:  
Email:   GenesisCrystalz@aol.com

Aim:     GenesisCrystalz

Thanks for reading. Lataz.


	2. Rejection

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Rejection

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            The water rippled when someone slid into the furo and Ranma cracked an eye open to see that it was his Hina-chan, of course.

            "Ranma," She pouted cutefully. "How dare you leave me in the bed by myself?" She asked in mock anger. It was the day after their wedding after all, and aren't they supposed to still be in bed now?

            "I'm sorry, but you just looked so beautiful sleeping and I didn't want to bother you." He answered with a smile.

            Her frown softened because it was impossible to get mad at her husband for any length of time and she replied, "Oh fine." She moved over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Last night was wonderful, Ranma. I've never felt that good before in my entire life." She snuggled up to him. "Can we continue where we left off?"

            Ranma gave her a wider smile and asked, "Left off? Don't you women ever get enough? I don't think I've ever been that tired in my whole life last night."

            "But it was worth it, don't you think?" She pulled Ranma into a passionate kiss which he responded eagerly. In this moment, their ki was pulled together, and they were connected even deeper than any other couple ever had. They were truly one whenever they were together, and their love for one another proves it.  When they parted, they were content with just holding each other, knowing how deeply the love for each other runs through them.

            "Thank you." He said suddenly.

            Hinako blinked in confusion. "For what, dear?" He kissed her affectionately on the side of her face.

            "For everything." He said simply.

**********

            Silence reigned over everyone in the waiting room. Doctor Tofu still had his head hung. The two families seemed to be in shock and the child Hinako had tears in her eyes. Finally, someone spoke.

            "Are you sure?" Nodoka asked calmly. "Are you sure that he is crippled?"

            "Yes, Saotome-san, I believe that your son is going to have to change his life drastically." Tofu answered her.

            "A manly man cannot be a cripple." She said simply. Hinako raised her head up and started to listen in the conversation. She didn't like where this was going. "I will not have a son who cannot fulfill a man's duty."

            "And I won't have a boy who can't even fight. I can't believe I wasted over ten years on that piece of trash." Genma's gruff voice said.

            "It's about time something happened to him. I guess this means that my engagement is over since he can't be much of an heir if he can't even practice martial arts." Akane smiled to herself.

            "Yes, that is unfortunate. Saotome, I feel sorry for you to have such a weak son." Soun said.

            "How can you say that?!" Hinako shrieked. Both she and Tofu were shocked beyond belief. "He's your family!" She didn't get any further as Nodoka interrupted.

            "He is not anymore. As soon as we get out of here, I'll have him officially disowned and removed from the Saotome family registry. I will not have such a disgrace on my family name."

            "Mr. and Mrs. Saotome, I beg you to reconsider. This is a serious matter, but you are being a bit harsh." Tofu tried to persuade them.

            "I will not change my mind. Come husband, it seems like we have no business here anymore." She and Genma started to walk out. Soun and Akane followed also, leaving Kasumi behind. Hinako went up to her and clutched her dress.

            "Kasumi-san, please, can you help Ranma? Can you try to get them to change their minds?" Hinako knew that she would help. Kasumi was the nicest person in the world. She'll do anything to....

            "No."

            "W-what?" Again, both Tofu and she were shocked.

            "I said no." She looked down and frowned. "I can't help everyone, you know. This is probably for the best for him." Hinako dropped her clutch on Kasumi's dress and slowly backed away.

            "H-how can you say that?" This can't be happening. How can this happen to anyone?

            "I just did. Tell Ranma when he wakes up that I'll have his things packed for someone to pick it up seeing as how he couldn't do it himself." Kasumi turned on her heels and followed her family out, leaving behind two people whose opinion in them had dropped dramatically.

~*~

            That's funny, I should be feeling some pain right about now. Okay, a few more minutes and I'll try to open my eyes. When I opened my eyes, I saw some machines. It was dark in the room, and from the view outside, it was pretty late. Alright, I already know that I'm going to be in a hospital anyway, but what happened? I turned to my side and saw a mop of brown hair. Wait, I recognize that mop. It moved to the side and a child's face came into view. Hinako?! Okay, just what the hell happened?! I tried to move my hand to wake her up, only that I couldn't. I sure hope Akane isn't going to pop out soon or else she'll freak if she finds out that Hinako is in the same room with me, even if she is in child form, then she'll probably call me a pedophile or something. Just why is she here anyway?

            "Hey, wake up." Damn, my throat is so dry. "Hey...what? Why isn't my arm moving? Okay, don't panic, there's gotta be an explanation for this. Maybe the perverted freak had put some paralyzing shiatsu points on me. Yeah, that must be it!" The little girl on his side started murmur something as she woke up. Apparently, she heard him talking. When she lifted her face up to view, Ranma saw evidence of her crying a lot, which further confused him. What reason does she have to cry for? Her eyes widened a bit and she rubbed her eyes to make sure that he was still there.

            "Ranma? Are you awake?" She asked quietly.

            "Um, yeah. How long was I out this time?" Ranma responded.

            Hinako sat up straight in her chair. "I think it's been about eight days. You almost didn't make it when you came in. We were so worried."

            Ranma blinked at what she said. Well, eight days almost takes the record. "Why are you here anyway? I didn't expect you to be here."

            Hinako's answer was to blush and saying, "I've been here the entire time. I meant to say something when you wake up." After a moment, she said, "Thank you, Ranma."

            "For what?" I was confused. But then I remembered right before I blacked out, I tried to save someone. It must have been her.

            "Saving me." She started to cry and hug me, to my surprise. Then I noticed something else. Even if I was paralyzed, I was strong enough to feel something and I didn't even notice her weight on me.

            "Um, Hinako?" She looked up at me. "What happened to me? Did the old ghoul try something on me again while I was asleep or something? How come I can't feel my arms or legs?" When I saw her crying harder, I was getting more worried. Hinako in her child form was never this emotional and it was starting to worry him. "Hinako? Tell me what's wrong. What happened?"

            While she was sobbing, she blurted out, "Oh Ranma, I'm so sorry! If I hadn't been there, then this wouldn't have happened to you!"

            Now this was almost scaring me. Not to mention the fact that I can't feel any of her tears dropping down on his body. "Tell me now." I ordered strongly.

            Hinako seemed to cry even harder. "You won't be able to practice your fighting anymore because of me!"

            "What the hell are you talking about?!" If I wasn't scared and worried before, I am now. Seeing no answer coming from the distraught girl, I tried to move my hand to shake her out of her depression, only that I can't. "Hinako! Calm down and tell me straight out right now!"

            This got her attention and she told him straight out why she feeling guilty. "You can't use your arms or legs anymore because of the poison and it's all my fault!"

            Poison. Ranma's mind was frozen. Was that stuff in Mousse's blades that strong? No, it can't be. I'll recover from this. I always do from stuff like this. But, what if I can't? I can't move. That means I can't fight. And that means that my entire life has been wasted? His body started to glow green with depression, growing every second as he thought about all of the things that he had lost. 

            Hinako backed away, partly in fear of the same kind of energy that nearly destroyed her. "R-Ranma? I'm so sorry. It's all my fault, If I hadn't distracted you, then you might not have been hurt." She started to cry again.

            This knocked Ranma slightly out of depression. How can she feel guilty? It's her job to break up fights anyway. He couldn't let someone else feel guilty about this; it's his fault for being careless after all. He'll find some way out of this. He always does. Just give him a couple of weeks and he'll be up and fighting again. At least I can count on the Tendos and mom and pops for help. Maybe Ucchan and the Amazons could to. Then we can go get those guys and beat them up a bit. Yeah, that's what we're gonna do. Ranma smiled at the stray strand of hope and said, "Relax, Hinako. It ain't your fault. I'll get better. All we have to do is round up the gang and go on some adventure looking for something that could help me."

            Hinako cease her crying and stared at him. How come he's not taking this seriously? Doesn't he know that he's crippled for life? "Ranma! This is serious! How can you be taking this so easily?!" She shouted incredulously.

            Ranma flinched, just a little, at her shouting. Jeez, were every twelve years olds this jumpy?

            The door opened quickly and light burst through the open space. For a brief moment, only the silhouette of Dr. Tofu could be seen before he turned on the room light. He was wearing a ruffled lab coat and his hair is all out of place. He had bags under his eyes, showing that he hadn't sleep for quite a while. "What's going on? I heard a shout." He saw Ranma's eyes open and Hinako standing up by his side. "Ranma! You're awake!"

            "Yeah, course I am. Nothing can keep me down for long. So when am I going home?" Both Tofu and Hinako became crestfallen. "Hey, doc, Hinako, what's going on?" Seeing no answer coming, his demeanor changed. His eyes didn't carry that confident look and his grin became a little strained. "Doc?"

            "Ranma, I believe we should tell what has gone on the last couple of days now before it gets worse." He brought another chair to Ranma's other side and Hinako sat back down in her chair.

            "Nothing bad happened to the Tendos, and my parents, did it?" Of course he was worried about them. It may not seem like it most of the time, but the Tendos had grown to be like his family ever since he had been living there for about two years. When he mentioned them, both of the room's other occupants flinched, leaving him thinking that something did happen.

            "No, Ranma. I believe that they are fine."

            Ranma let out a breath that he didn't know that he was holding. "At least they're alright. So what's wrong?"

            "What we're about to tell you may be hard for you to understand, but it is the whole truth, Ranma." At Ranma's reluctant nod, Tofu continued. "I'm afraid that the condition that you are in is permanent."

            Ranma interrupted, "What do ya mean? There's gotta be some kind of magic item out there that could help. Heck, the Old Ghoul probably has a stash of them somewhere." Unfortunately during his stay in Nerima, he, and practically everyone else, had grown dependent on magic.

            Tofu sighed. It was going to be difficult to explain this to the crippled youth. "I'm afraid that that wouldn't help either, your condition is too severe."

            "What do you mean by that? Nothing can keep me down for...."

            "Would you just stop with your macho attitude?! This is serious!" Hinako yelled at him.

            "She is right, Ranma. So please cut your attitude and hear us out." Ranma clamped his mouth shut at the insistence of Tofu and Hinako. "As I said, even the magical items that Cologne had is no use. We had tried to get your attackers, but they disappeared on us, leaving no clues on how to cure you."

            "What about the Tendos, mum and pops, and Ucchan? Don't they got anything?" He asked hopefully. Both of them became silent. He did not like how this conversation was going.

            "I'm afraid that the Tendos and your parents have deserted you."

            "What do ya mean? They ain't gonna do something stupid like that..." But then he had some doubts. If his condition is that bad as they said, would they leave him like that? He convinced himself that they wouldn't do something like that especially after all they been through. They were his family after all. Families don't do things like that.

            "Ranma...." Hinako started, but was interrupted by him.

            "I don't know why you're telling me this, but I won't believe it until I see it for myself." Ranma spoke confidently. Tofu and Hinako both nodded solemnly to themselves. They had expected something like this to happen; they just want to tell him first so that the shock won't traumatize him too much. What else would you do to a person whose family had thrown him away like yesterday's trash?

            "And what about Ucchan? She's still on my side, isn't she?" He knew that his childhood friend would never leave him. He knows that she knows that he only thought of her as a friend and friends always stick together. 

            "The Kuonji girl left town a couple of days ago; she left a note for you, though." Hinako rummaged through the purse at her side to pull out an envelope, and after confirmation from him, she opened it and held the letter in front of him so that he could read it.

            Ranma was dazed as to why Ucchan would leave Nerima, but as he read on....

            _Dear Ranchan,_

_            I'm sorry for what has happened to you. I couldn't stand to see you in that condition, but I had tried to see if I could help. But when I heard that it's not possible and that you're not a Saotome anymore, I gave up. There's nothing left for me in Nerima. You're gone and our engagement is nullified. I had thought that our love would help us stay together, but reality set in and I saw how stupid I was in believing that I was your cute fiancée. I hope we don't meet ever again._

_                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                For the last time,_

_                                                                                                                        Ucchan_

Ranma stared blankly at the note. It was hard enough to read that his best friend from childhood left him like that. But she had also said that he wasn't a Saotome. What was that about? He looked at the two who were still sitting silently, awaiting his reaction. They hadn't read the letter itself, but they had deduced a theory of what it was, considering the pattern the others had represented. Ranma asked, "W-what's this about me not being a Saotome?" His voice had tried to sound confident, but it was steadily breaking apart at these revelations.

            Again, both of them hung their heads. "Your mother...." Dr. Tofu started. "Disowned you after finding out your condition."

            The world froze around Ranma. His eyes were wide open and his mouth was partially open, about to speak, but yet at the same time, couldn't. Even as his outside was completely shot, his mind was reacting to this at a slow and disbelieving pace. No, mom wouldn't do that to me. Pops, Mister Tendo, Kasumi, and Akane would have objected. It's been over a year since I knew her and I know that wouldn't, she's my mother for Kami's sake! But what if they didn't, a small voice asked. What if they agreed to her decision? What if everything they're saying is true? What if everyone left me like this? This isn't true. I refuse to believe it. "No." Tofu and Hinako heard him whisper. "No." His voice rising. "I won't believe it! It's not true!" Ranma tried to thrash in his bed, but all he could move was his head. "It's not true!"

            "Ranma!" They both shouted. Doctor Tofu held his head down, and Ranma was still shouting out that this wasn't real. "Ranma, c-calm down!" Hinako yelled at him out of fear. She was still in her young form and its mind couldn't handle this kind of stress.

            "Ranma! Stay still; you'll only aggravate your injuries!" Tofu shouted. He was worried that this would happen also. He had wanted to help him through all of this slowly, but it seems like it would not be so. But all of the sudden, Ranma stopped and everything fell silent once more.

            "Leave." , was his sole answer. Tofu and Hinako stood back, afraid of what this means. "Leave me alone. I don't want to hear any more of your explanations. As soon as I get out of here, I'll find out the truth."

            "But we're telling...."

            "I don't want to hear it, Hinako. When can I get out of here?"

            "..." Tofu was hesitant to say.

            "When, doc?" Ranma's voice held no emotion.

            Tofu gave a glance at Hinako, who was a worried at how he was acting at the moment. They were both very worried about what would happen. "I'll take you to the Tendos tomorrow." At hearing no response, he coaxed a saddened Hinako out of the room.

~*~

            "We're here, Ranma." Tofu had kept to his word and was currently pushing Ranma's wheelchair to the Tendo household. Ranma had kept strangely silent during the entire trip and didn't show any sign of him being attentive. Hinako had come along, too, mostly as to see what would happen. She managed to gain some battle aura somewhere and is her adult form, which she estimated that will last enough for the meeting. She wanted to use this form because when the need to argue would arise --which she knows is highly possible--, her adult appearance would have more strength on their side.

            They went through the gate and knocked on the front door. As expected, it was Kasumi who opened the door. "Hello, how may I....Oh it's you three." She had her smile on, but her eyes told a different story to those who would look.

            Ranma had raised his head up to meet Kasumi's face and gave a weak smile, obviously strained. His beliefs on what happened depended greatly on how Kasumi acted. "Hey, Kasumi. How're things?"

            "My family is doing fine, Ranma-san." Kasumi gave a slight frown.

            "Kasumi, dear, who's at the door?" A copper haired woman walked into view.

            "Mom! What's up?" Ranma's wide smile at the sight of her faded when the person in question scowled at him. "Mom?"

            "Excuse me, but as far as I know, I have no son." She still had that hard glare pointed at the three of them. Ranma fumbled for his words as he tried to comprehend what was just said.

            "Excuse me, Saotome-san, but you are being far too harsh as we had said before." Hinako informed her.

            "And as I had said, I will allow such a disgrace in my family." She had barely raised her voice, but to Ranma, it might as well have been thunder.

            He was shocked, how could she do this?

            "Nodoka, what's going on? Oh, it's the boy." Genma walked to the door, followed closely by Soun.

            "What is he doing here? Kasumi, go fetch his things so that he could leave as soon as possible." He talked as if the subject was about the weather.

            How could they be going along with this?

            "Certainly, father." Kasumi went inside and brought back out a slim backpack. "Here are all of his belongings." She tossed the bag onto his lap.

            He never felt it, but the impact of what she's doing, what they are all doing hit him had as much strength as a truck impacting him at high velocities. His only question was why....

            "Why are you doing this to him?! He's your family!" Tofu shouted at them. Some of them were slightly surprised at the usually calm doctor shouting. "What is difference about him now than any of the other times we thought that it was hopeless? We all stayed together, that's what! What's so different about this time?!" Hinako couldn't keep from giving them a piece of her mind also.

            "I may not know him as intimately as all of you have, but I have heard plenty of stories of Ranma overcoming the impossible too many times for the count. Why now, why this time?" She glared fiercely at them. Ranma was in between them and still bore the look of shock.

            "I'll tell you why." A voice behind them spoke, a voice that they all should know. "Ever since he came here, it had been hell for everyone." Akane was wearing that same smirk that Hinako detested. She walked up to the wheelchair and spun it around so that he was facing her.

            Akane. He knows that he may not have acted as he should have almost every time, but she could at least come to his defense after all they have been through.... A brief glimmer of hope shown in his eyes.

            "Well, it's about time you paid for our suffering, you jerk."

            The glimmer was snuffed out immediately. Why. He had come to save her so many times ever since he was here. Where was the gratitude? He had killed before to save her. Why must this happen to him? "A-Aka...?"

            "Don't you dare say my name." She snarled at him. "You want to know the real reason we gave up on you?" Hinako and Tofu made to stop her, but she kept going. "After we left the hospital the first time, we told the Amazons about what happened to you. They came to check you out. They found out the poison was magical in nature and that there were no counters to reverse it. It was a one of a kind poison mix made specifically to do the bidding of its user's hatred. Cologne herself said that their Amazons laws have something on things like that that allows them to drop whatever business with the victim. And you know what happened? That Chinese bitch, her great grandmother, and Mousse just up and left. They didn't want to put any effort into helping you since it's hopeless. Oh yeah! They also said something about it finally being time for them to have a reason to go back home.

            "You're not welcome here anymore. You have no reason to be since all of your engagements are nullified. See, how'd you like that? You can't be a pervert now, you pathetic piece of...."

            "Happo Tsurisen Gaeshi!" Hinako blasted Akane with her stored energy. Everyone was surprised at the sudden attack from her. Akane flew back all the way back to the stone wall with a deafening crash. As Hinako shrunk back into her child form, she still had her fingers into a triangular position from her energy blast. She was breathing hard and openly glaring at the remaining ex-family members of Ranma. "We will not have Ranma treated this way!"

            "How dare you attack my daughter! I want all of you off my property immediately or else!" Soun yelled at them. Everyone else gave them looks that showed how much they were unwelcome.

            "What about Ranma?" Tofu asked angrily. He knew that it was futile to ask again, but he just wanted to know how deeply they meant what they're doing to him.

            "He's useless to us now, throw him away for all that we care." Genma spoke out. The others nodded their sentiments.

            It was at this point that Ranma's mind broke apart.

===========

Author's notes:

(6/26/03)

            ....People are soo gonna flame me for this....

          Well back to the notes. Everyone's OOC, I know, but could you imagine a scene even remotely like this when they are IC? Nope, thought not. This chap was only meant to show how Ranma would react upon finding out what happened.

            This is shown more realistically than other fics because it actually explores the options available to him, considering that it's the Ranma world we're talking about. So I made the poison with some hidden cure that nobody knows how to find, if there is any. The poison is designed to attack the victim on a degree of how many negative emotions that the attacker has against him, in this case, a helluvalot. I know that Tofu said that they managed to nullify the poison, but that only refers to stopping its spread, not cure.

            As you could plainly see, Hinako and Tofu are Ranma's only allies. The Tendos and Saotomes abandoned him. Ukyo skipped town the moment he's not a Saotome anymore (For more info, look at her engagement pledge). The Amazon left also because there's no use for him anymore. Well...sucks for him.

lataz, plz try to keep reading

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Flames could go there too, just please don't threaten me with bodily harm.


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